#angelenos.starter

she tried not to stare, but she knows the menu could be a little overwhelming. rosie hesitates only briefly before turning to the other, punching the top of her aquatic boba ( 120% sugar, extra jellyfish, less ice ) before she speaks. “ is this your first time ?? ” she takes a quick sip, head tilted in question. “ they have a lot of choices, but i buy the same thing every single time. their aquatic boba is really good, and it’s super cute too. see ?? ” she lifts her cup, brings it closer to the other’s line of sight. “ i always ask for extra jellyfish. ”

"which colour do you think i should go for?" jaya asks the other, looking down at her choices. she loved getting her nails painted, jaya always felt a little more confident whenever she left the shop, "i was thinkin' of maybe getting some cute flowers, like daisies on there too, for some spring vibes or has that been done to death?".

“listen,” he begins, looking up at the person who had just settled into the seat across from him. “i don’t mean to be rude, but—isn’t there literally anywhere else you could sit?” he’s usually not this callous, at least not at two in the afternoon, but its been a shitty day in an even shittier week and ceph just can’t deal with people right now.

the idea came to her while she was lying down in bed, scrolling mindlessly through tiktok late on a wednesday night. the video was simple—an insanely pretty girl dressed in black, molding clay like it was the easiest thing in the world. huh, looks interesting. and that was how she ended up registering for a pottery class that weekend. now, seated in front of the wheel, sleeves pushed up and a streak of clay already on her cheek, she cracks her knuckles like she’s about to win something. “alright, let’s see if i’m a natural.” she pauses, glancing over to the person next to her. “what are the odds this thing collapses in the next five minutes?”

this was fine. straight people went to gay bars all the time. they talk about how fun it is, tell all their friends about it, too. just because she’s at radiant it doesn’t automatically mean she’s — no one will know. it’ll be okay. rosie has mostly calmed herself down by the end of her little pep talk, but the fear comes back full force when she turns around only to see a familiar face. “ oh !! hi, i was just — i’ve heard so much about this place, you know ?? i had no idea that, uh — that gay bars could be so fun. is that problematic to say ?? i mean i am straight, so i just . . . i don’t want to offend. ” that was . . . convincing enough, surely ??

the junction isn’t quite as intimidating as elio thought it would be, but as someone who persists on instant ramen more often than he cares to admit, he’s still a little out of his depth. “excuse me,” he asks, turning to the only other person poring through the produce at this particular stall, “this is a little embarrassing, but—how can you tell the difference between a good kiwi and a bad one?”

robin takes selfies on his phone camera, trying out a few different poses and expressions. smiling, "cool bad boy," peace sign, etc. when he realizes the other's presence, though, he freezes. "i'm sorry, i'm not..." he coughs, trying to maintain a chill expression despite the flushed color of his cheeks. "i'm not always this vain, i promise." in fact, most of the photos he took on his phone didn't include his own face. "today's just a bit special. it's my birthday..."